Extract Transform and Load (ETL) servers may be described as ones that extract data from a source, transform the data, and load the data back to the source or to a target. Master Data Management (MDM) servers may be described as managing enterprise data and providing a Single Source of Truth (SSoT). Single Source of Truth (SSoT) may be described as structuring information models so that each data element is stored once (i.e., there are no duplicates stored), but there may be many references to the data element.
Access to ETL and MDM servers today is for the most part closed and highly specialized. ETL and MDM tool user interfaces are complex and require extensive training to use. This prevents the use of ETL and MDM servers from becoming more commonplace.
In addition, today, even a simple problem, such as duplicate records, may hold up an entire data upload process for MDM servers. Also, if multiple participants need to be contacted to solve a problem, the time to resolution can increase exponentially.
Existing ETL tools offer a Graphical User Interface (GUI) for ETL component (e.g., job) design, administration, and monitoring. The GUI for ETL component design and monitoring may be complicated, so that customers typically need to undergo training before they can use the GUI and often engage services of experts.
The ETL tool development team may struggle to keep up with ever evolving GUI technologies. Changing the GUI to these new GUI technologies may be time-consuming and expensive. Also, each time the ETL tool changes the GUI interface, customers undergo an often steep learning curve before they can use the GUI.
Developing mobile applications for the ETL tools may be difficult because of the complexity, plethora of devices to support, lack of mobile development skills, and significant time to design mobile user interfaces. As a result, the technology of the ETL GUIs may lag behind the rest of the industry.
Furthermore, the ETL tools are not leveraged as a tool to provide mobile users access to their data in their databases, data warehouses, or other data sources.
Existing MDM tools also offer a Graphical User Interface (GUI) for monitoring and administration. The GUI interface is typically a bespoke MDM interface that requires training, is accessed apart from normal business processes, and/or is embedded in other places not associated with a GUI used regularly by daily users.